With less than two weeks to go, the countdown begins. My food is purchased but not assembled. My drop boxes aren’t packed or labeled. My backpack is not packed or organized. But I made progress and downloaded music. Woo. I am getting restless and I just want to go. There is a point where planning and prep becomes tedious and exhausting. After all of these little headaches, I can tackle anything on the trail.

Right now, I am just passing out my blog address and getting everyone excited about my trip. I’m still getting unsolicited advice as if I haven’t been planning for an entire year. People are still telling me that the snow in the Sierras is terrible this year and trying to freak me out.  As my mom and I were sitting in a flowery field in the lower Sierras this past weekend, drinking a beer, she gave me advice that will help me through my entire hike. She said, “Whatever. You’ll deal with that when you come to it.” When I laughed, she elaborated. “You have common sense, you grew up in the mountains, and you’re not a city kid. You can do this.” That was it. That’s all I needed.